Why Rare Bourbon Collectors Should Always Check Airport Shops

Avid bourbon collectors should always leave some extra room in their suitcase when they're flying. Many airports have duty-free shops in their non-nation transit zones that vend specialty goods unaffected by the taxes, duties, or other fees that any one country would impose on the product. Alcohol is a commonly taxed item and is a major player at duty-free stores. You could, in theory, stock up on your regular favorites, but duty-free stores are also known to carry rare and hard-to-find bourbons and other whiskies.

Commonly coveted picks for bourbon collectors are bottles from the coveted Blanton's brand. Even the original bottle is fairly rare in U.S. liquor stores but is a regular fixture at duty-free stores. If you find yourself in Japan, drinkers recommend checking for the same distillery's Japanese-exclusive Black and Red Label offerings. In other parts of the world, you can find the company's Gold and Straight From the Barrel bottles, too. People have even found hyper-elusive bottles of aged Eagle Rare in American duty-free stores.

Whiskey makers also release duty-free exclusives. Jack Daniels has re-released some of its limited-edition bourbons, such as the American Single Malt and the Silver Select, as bottles only available at airport shops. Jim Beam has also had similar offerings. Maker's Mark recently opened the Wood Finishing City Series as a duty free–exclusive line that will have limited-edition runs based on the whiskey flavors prominent in major metropolitan areas around the world. These items are labeled as "travel retail exclusives," so keep your eyes peeled for that marker. However, bourbon enthusiasts have noted that these special bottles are tougher and tougher to find in recent years.

If you enjoy collecting whiskeys outside of just bourbon, your options open up even more. Returning to Japan, the country's booming whisky industry stocks their duty-free stores with tons of sought-after bottles — special aged offerings from Hibiki frequently show up on travelers' wish lists, specifically. Scotch, too, is an especially duty-free–friendly spirit, and you can find rare Macallan or Glenmorangie bottles, among others.

Keep in mind that, depending on where you are, where you're going, how much booze you bought, and at what stage of your journey you're in, you might have to pay extra fees at customs or to your airline to bring your rare find along. And, duty-free pricing might be over the MSRP, so make sure that you're compensating by picking up a bottle that you couldn't catch back home.